Skipper
by Elliesmile
Summary: Middle Earth is dying. But heroes are always available. Some are right where they need to be and others need to be brought back. When Bilbo baggins returns from Valinor, the world is in a very different place. But with the help of an outgoing skipper Hobbit, can he restore Middle Earth and find hope of his own along the way...
1. Prologue

Rain doesn't fall anymore. The clouds burned out long ago and the sky stings an angry, hot orange that never cools. The sun beats down on the ground, cracking mud into dust.

Middle Earth is destroyed.

The Elves have all gone now. The last of the immortals set off for Valinor at the end of the Third age and none remain. Dwarves are few, but they remain scattered across various kingdoms, waiting for a chance to rise from the shadows. There are many humans and there has been since the start of the fourth age.

Titles are given.

Those who choose to remain in groups, the ones who choose a supportive nomadic society over being alone in the wilderness, are known as Flocks. Flocks consist of every single race in middle earth. Dwarves, humans, Faes, Pixies, Hobbits, white witches and even the odd shape shifter travel in harmony as a single society.

There are also Skippers. These are rare. Skippers are single beings who choose to live alone in the wastelands of middle earth. It's unsafe, dangerous and normally stupid. But Skipping might be somebody's only option if they're driven away from a flock because of crime.

Lastly, there are Hitchers. They're no joke. Similar to a flock, but ruthless. There is no order within a Hitcher because they're normally Skippers that have bonded together. The worst thing about a Hitcher is that they will eat anything. And by anything, that would count one another, if the need arose. If they get hungry they'll simply kill the weakest and cook them. Barbaric as it was, the groups of Hitchers seemed to flourish better than Skippers or Flocks.

But the new earth is ruled by dragons. Since Smaug was driven from the lost kingdom of Erebor, more Drakes began to swarm from the far kingdoms and eventually, they have overrun the old kings. They flit across the skies, picking off anybody who sticks on their own. The safest place from dragons is simply to seek one of few jungles, where water has remained and plant life flourishes. But these are hard to come across and mostly inhabited by Hitchers.

But Middle-Earth still waits. Heroes are needed and it refuses to give up because if heroes have come from unlikely beginnings before, there is still hope…


	2. Dreams

_**The girl screams. It is dark and cold and the air whips her mucky hair around her face. She is leaning over the cliff face, screaming downwards at her mate who is currently grasping as hard as he can to the outcrop of rock. The look on his face is one of utter defeat. He knows he will fall.**_

_**The water that once lay below this cliff is gone and harsh rocks and collapsed ruins lay below him. The ruins in question have come from the area above him, an ancient Elven city that was flourishing in the Third age but has now fallen, rumoured to be the last homely home before the sea. **_

_**But now he will fall from the platform above the lost ocean and she will be left behind. The girl gives one last scream before he lets go of the rock and plummets downwards.**_

_**Her face turns away as she hears a screech and the girl looks behind her. A baby Drake, barely even fully hatched, has stumbled away from a clutch of purple eggs and she covers her ears as it screams at her. The horrible white thing then jumps towards her and the girl lets out a gasp as it catches her face with its claw and then skitters past her and glides downwards.**_

_**The girl peers over the edge and covers her bleeding face with her hand. She turns away in disgust as the baby dragon picks at the body of her dead mate where he lies on the rocks below.**_

_**She steals one look back before clambering away and up the cliff face, sobbing as she climbs…**_

Bilbo's eyes snapped open and he forced himself to breathe slowly through his nose. The most horrendous dreams still haunted him, but this one was odd. The dreams before were of Thorin and Fili and Kili and their faces as they went to battle without him, defending their home.

He sat up and looked over at his nephew, Frodo as he slept. The boy had grown up a little but time moved slowly in Valinor. Hundreds of years had already passed but it felt like so much longer to Bilbo.

There was a knock at the door and a small blonde elf walked in. Her hair was almost white blonder and her ears peeked out from behind the shiny locks.

"Enora?" Bilbo asked "What time is it? You don't normally visit until morning"

The she-elf looked at him sadly "Bilbo. Middle-Earth needs your help"

Bilbo blinked at her and quickly jumped up, his old body aching as he did so "What? How?"

She took his hand with a sad expression on her face.

"Lord Elrond has called for you. We felt your dream Bilbo and you need to be a hero again. The world you left behind is falling to ruin and dragons are destroying everything" she took a breath "We're sending you back to Middle-Earth"

**-XXX-**

**Okay, thanks for reading and I'll update soon**

**Please review this story. My last story had to be terminated because of a lack of reviews and I need them if my work is to develop.**

**Thanks, Ellie x**


	3. Doorframes and dust

_**Welcome back lovelies x**_

_**Please enjoy and review. Let me know what I'm doing right and wrong. Hopefully I'll pick up the pace a little bit in this chapter but nothing major is going to happen soon although the plot should be established here.**_

_**Ellie x**_

-XXX-

Bilbo blinked slowly, standing in front of a huge door frame that appeared to serve no purpose.

Lord Elrond had given Bilbo a limited supply of food after stating, much to Bilbo's alarm, that anymore food would attract unwanted attention and that was something he did not need.

Despite all of that, Bilbo had been told nothing except not to antagonise anybody, to stay away from large groups and to kill four dragons.

Bilbo choked "_Four_ dragons?!"

The elves looked at him sheepishly and Enora stepped forwards.

"Elemental Drakes, Mr Bilbo" she said slowly "Fire, Water, Earth and Air are the dragons that have left Middle-Earth in such a state. They control the Temperature, Rainfall, Condition of the Ground and The Wind"

Lord Elrond nodded "The Dragons have conditioned the earth the way they want it and that it how they want it to stay. They will defend their homes fiercely as you saw in your dream and they won't stop if their families are threatened. The other dragons with be easily driven away once the Main four are gone but they are still a threat until that point. Do you understand?"

Bilbo nodded and swallowed, tugging a heavy backpack onto his shoulders and his legs nearly gave in. He gave a harsh cough

"I'm not quite the hobbit I used to be" he smiled jokingly but the elves could see the worried expression in his face "Tell Frodo I'll be back soon, okay?"

Enora nodded and Lord Elrond stepped forwards, gesturing to the empty doorframe

"What do I do now?" Bilbo asked and jumped about 3 feet into the air when the frame spat sparks at him "I'm not walking through that am I?"

He gave a small squeak as Enora sighed and shoved him harshly forwards.

Falling like this was an odd sensation. It was almost like he was falling upwards and Bilbo wanted to be sick. He could see different colours moving around and the only logical thought that could pass through his mind was 'Doorframes don't normally work like this' which he then rethought because that was a ridiculously daft statement in itself. Suddenly, he hit the ground and made a sharp 'ooof' when he landed.

He sat up abruptly, lifting his arm to his face to rub his head. He stopped and stared at both sides of his hands, flipping them over and over at the realisation that he was young again.

His old greying skin had been replaced with lightly tanned and smooth new skin that glimmered ever so slightly in the harsh sunlight. He reached to his ears and pulled forwards a lock of hair into his line of sight to see that the familiar honey tones had returned to his hair and it was now glossy and reached just above his chin. He looked just like he did before he set out for Erebor, the same clothing and everything.

Then he stopped and looked around after standing. He was stood in the middle of nowhere. The ground was cracked and dusty and the wind was so harsh that it blew grains of sand and dust into his face, causing him to splutter uncontrollably. He looked around completely perplexed as to where he should go next. There was nothing on the flat landscape for miles around and no matter where he spun to look, nothing appeared.

He cursed his bad luck and sighed at the ridiculous idea that came to mind

"Excuse me?" He hollered up at the sky "Where do I go now?"

He was about to debate with himself the actual likelihood of Lord Elrond calling down to tell him to take the next left and carry on till sunset, when a huge shadow flickered over the ground.

Bilbo looked up and shielded his eyes. A huge figure crossed over the sun, a huge figure with wings…


	4. Birds of a feather

_**Hello again people x**_

_**I am so sorry this took such a long time to update. I'm afraid I've been busy with revision and exams as well as, unbelievably, a social life!**_

_**Thanks for sticking with this story and I love you all! X**_

_**(Who else pre-ordered 'The Hobbit-An Unexpected Journey? I did!)**_

-XXX-

_Bilbo looked up and shielded his eyes. A huge figure crossed over the sun, a huge figure with wings…_

-XXX-

Della stared out onto the harsh terrain that past generations of her family would've called home. This place used to be covered in lush, rolling greenery. Her mother had told her stories when she was little, stories about small heroes from Hobbiton, in the shire and Della had hung off every word.

It was less than a fairy-tale now, though. The hobbit holes were mainly filled with sand and only a few remained, barely more than cubby holes in the sandstone that were almost useless against the harsh sandstorms and winds of the desert that had formed here.

Della shook away the gut-wrenching thoughts and returned to the present. Her large, Hobbit feet gently drumming the ground as she walked. Suddenly, the sunlight flickered and she glanced up to see it. A dragon. It was only a baby one, probably on its first hunt without its mother. And that made it dangerous.

Della's attention was caught by a tiny figure, about 100 metres away stumbling about in the sand.

"Excuse me?" He hollered up at the sky "Where do I go now?"

"What the hell…?" Della asked herself glancing back up at the dragon that had its eyes fixed on the tiny man below it, apparently intent on hunting him as it hadn't noticed the tiny she-hobbit yet.

Della gave a sigh of relief as she began to creep backwards and out of sight. She was glad that thing had taken an interest in the idiot, and not her.

She jogged quickly backwards and behind a small sand bank up on the hill. She waited and watched the young Hobbit as he glanced up at the sky and squeaked in terror, before beginning to run around in oddly shaped circles, seeming to be under the impression that he could confuse a dragon.

She squinted in disbelief as she stared at him and he continued to shriek loudly. There was a gut wrenching nag in her stomach as she thought of Artille, her dead mate who had fallen from the cliffs of Rivendell just a few days back. Della could remember every moment and the one that had sprung to mind in that instant was the first time they had met.

She had just been cast away from her own Flock. Her crime? Stealing bread from the flock leader. The punishment was exile and so she was cast away and into the desert. Della had wandered for two days and two nights without food or water. Of course, she knew now that her mistake should have cost her life. She was easy picking for dragons. Of course, somewhere inside herself she had known that she was in the middle of dragon territory. A little part of her didn't care either. She wanted to die and the thirst and hunger was unbearable.

The hatchling dragon had spotted her quickly. After all, she practically walked into the middle of the nest. Before it's large but weak jaw could close around her head she felt wind move past as Artille had run into the dragon nest and sliced its head clean off.

Della snapped out of her trance, staring back at the terrified Hobbit in front of her. She sighed to herself and ran forwards, drawing her short-sword out from its sheath.

'_What the hell am I doing?'_ She thought to herself. The sentimentality was ridiculous. Her own daft mind saw a little bit of herself in that other Hobbit and she'd rather not see him die where she had lived.

"Move!" she yelled and the Honey-haired hobbit ducked as she sliced across where his shoulders would've been, just cutting across where the dragons face had been aiming to bite.

The baby drake gave a screech of agony as the slash across its nose began to flow thick treacly black blood. It screamed again as Della thrust the sword into its throat, the panicked sound dying down to whimpering breaths as it lost its fight.

Della glanced back at the male hobbit, drawing her sword, Maegnas, out of the dead lizard's carcass and dropping it back in the sheath. He wasn't slightly bothered at all, he just looked relieved.

Della narrowed her eyes at the man in front of her and thought quietly to herself as he tried to re-compose himself.

'_This should be interesting…'_


	5. Of Revelations and bruises

_**Hello again x**_

_**Sorry it's been even longer this time but I've had more exams.**_

_**Enjoy the chapter and please review x**_

-XXX-

"What the hell are you doing?" Della asked the hobbit in front of her as she grabbed his arms to haul him up "You could've got yourself killed?!"

He blinked at her rapidly and tried to smile but it came out lopsided and wonky so he abandoned the hope of charming her

"Bilbo Baggins" he stated and bowed, painful images flowing as the thought of two young male dwarves whom had arrived at his door a thousand summers ago flitted to mind "At your service"

Della looked at him, her sharp steely eyes glaring at him furiously before she pulled her hand back and slapped him. Hard

"Ow!" Bilbo yelped, clutching his face "What was that for?"

"What the hell were you doing!?" Della screamed waving her sword in his face "I ought to slice your eyes from your…"

She was cut off as Bilbo grasped hold of her wrist, hard, and didn't let go

"Hey, what are you…" she started

Bilbo shushed her "Where did you get this sword?" he asked and for the first time in her life, Della was silent

"Where did you get it!" he yelled and Della nearly jumped out of her skin

"I…I found it…" she stammered and pointed at one of the roundish holes in the sand "In there"

Bilbo snatched it away from her despite her protests and held it to the light, familiarising himself with every smooth curve and every knot in the wooden whirls on the handle

"This is my sword…This is Sting!"

_**I know it's short, hopefully I'll have another chapter up soon, but it's just a quickie to remind you all that I'm, you know, not dead or missing.**_

_**Thanks for reading and thank you to all my lovely faithful's**_

_**Your patience never fails to astound me **_

_**Ellie x**_


	6. The Spiders Bane

_**Hello again. I promised this chapter would be up soon so here it is.**_

_**Thank you to;**_

'_**Sakurayuuki 19'**_

'_**Lady Foxen'**_

'_**Stardust'**_

_**And 'imaginary girl'**_

_**Your comments were lovely and thank you for staying so faithful to my story. It takes no small degree of patience for my stories to get going so I hope I won't disappoint you.**_

_**Ellie x**_

-XXX-

"Sting?" Della asked "You called your sword sting?"

Bilbo blinked "Yes. I thought it was very appropriate. It's sharp, pointy and… stingy…"

The she-hobbit looked at it up and down "It says here that its name is Maegnas"

Bilbo looked at the sword, staring at the flowing, gentle inscription on the edge of the sword.

"This wasn't here before" he gasped in annoyance "This was put on after I wielded it"

He looked at the desecration that had occurred whilst his beloved sword, his only memory of the quest to Erebor, had been away from his hands

"Maegnas aen estar nín - dagnir in yngyl im" Bilbo read with recognition crossing his face "This is elvish"

Della nodded and glanced back at the sword "Maegnas is my name, I am the spiders bane. That's what it means. Artille told me"

"Who's that?" Bilbo asked narrowing his eyes; the girl looked familiar from somewhere

"Urmmm… a friend of mine" Della nodded smoothing her hair back

"Well… Maegnas just means the sharp point in elvish" Bilbo shrugged "So…this must be sting"

"Why is your sword 'the spiders bane' Della asked, her curious nature getting the better of her "There've been no spiders this side of Mirkwood since…well there never has been"

Bilbo smiled, memories flitting back of dwarves wrapped securely in spiders silk and although he was scared at the time, the thoughts made him want to laugh.

"I was travelling to Erebor long ago" Bilbo smiled "My travelling companions were stolen from me by spiders. I slayed the horrible creatures and took back my friends after no small amount of torment on the spiders' part"

Della looked at him and there was a few moments silence

"That's the most ridiculous story I've ever heard" Della scoffed "I'm not an idiot"

Bilbo huffed "It's true. You _are_ an idiot if you don't believe it happened"

The young woman looked at him, her piercing green eyes boring into his "I _know_ it's true!" she exclaimed "Everyone knows it's true and everyone knows it, every child in middle earth is told that story and most memorise it before the age of 5. That's the story of Bilbo Baggins and the dwarves quest to recapture Erebor!"

"You…you know that story?" Bilbo stammered

Della nodded at him "Who are you?" she asked peering at his face. Recognition flickered in her eyes and she scampered backwards along the sand "I knew you seemed familiar!" she cried, reaching into her backpack to pull out a small leather bound book with the pressed title worn away so the name of the novel was un readable. She pulled out a browning crumbling slip of paper and held it up to him.

Bilbo stared at the picture. It was him, the tiny drawing that Ori had done on the journey whilst he had been sat on a log around the campfire, finishing dinner.

"You're him" spluttered "You're Bilbo Baggins!"


	7. There and back again

Della scuttled away from him as fast as she could. She was freaking out.

Now, normally, she was a very sensible and rational hobbit. She'd deal with things directly and appropriately. Mostly, she was logical and when problems came along, she'd guide herself through it calmly.

But this was insanity. She was being chased through the sandy remains of Hobbiton by a man that died centuries ago and her mind was collapsing in on itself

"Get away from me!" she yelled hysterically, flinging sand pathetically at Bilbo

He rubbed his eyes and jogged after her briskly "Please…" he panted "Come back!"

Della looked over her shoulder and tripped backwards, falling onto the sand where Bilbo promptly flung himself down too. Straddling her and holding her arms above her head

"Stop running!" he yelped as Della tried to knee him in the groin "Calm down and I'll let you go"

"No!" Della screamed thrashing around "Get your hands off me! You're dead. You're actually dead!"

After several moments Della stopped screeching and Bilbo loosened his grip allowing her to move her arms "It's okay, stay calm"

He stood up and helped her off the ground, only too aware that she was staring at him accusingly.

"What is your problem with me?" he asked "I _was_ dead but I'm obviously not now!"

Della pouted and ignored his question "This isn't possible" she muttered "You'd be thousands of years old by now…you should be dust in the ground"

"Oh…thank you very much" Bilbo huffed and brought his thoughts back to the picture she had pulled out "Where did you get that book?" he asked

Della blinked. "Same place I found Maegna… Sting" she corrected herself "In one of the old Hobbit holes"

Bilbo looked up "Old hobbit holes? This was Hobbiton?"

Della nodded sadly and handed Bilbo the red, leather bound book

He opened the first page and looked at the familiar writing scrawled across the inside cover

"There and back again" he whispered "This is mine. You're carrying my _whole_ life around inside your backpack"

Della blinked at him and said nothing, trying her hardest not to faint or collapse with confusion "We should find shelter soon, this place is a breeding ground for dragons and if there was one baby dragon earlier there'll be about 6 more come nightfall"

Bilbo nodded, choosing to ask her question later.

He followed her up onto the sloping sand cliffs and into a tiny little hole in the rock. He shivered at the thought that this could've been bag end, the entrance was certainly big enough…

_**Hello again,**_

_**I know this story is taking a while to get going but it will eventually pick up**_

_**I promise you that within a few chapters we'll have some serious plot twists including returning characters…**_

_**Ellie x**_


	8. Of Fathers and Brothers

_**Hello my lovely readers x**_

_**I'm hoping I gain a few more reviews for this chapter as I haven't received many previously. To those who have reviewed, thank you and god bless for your faithfulness. This chapter is longer than previous ones so enjoy!**_

_**Thank you and please review. I'll give you all virtual cookies!**_

When the morning came, the sand-storms died down and it became blisteringly hot again in a short space of time.

Della and Bilbo crawled out of the sandy hole and stood up, dusting themselves off. There were ominous marks in the sand, where dragon tails had swept scarily close to the entrance, and metres away from where Della and Bilbo had huddled asleep

They decided quickly to find shelter in the nearest forest, which would be a few days trek from where they were now. But Della assured him it would be safe for them to remain there

"Why are you here?" she asked as they walked slowly across the sand "There must be a reason why?"

Bilbo thought to himself. Telling her might be dangerous, she could do anything with the information he had but he was left with no other choice. He wouldn't be able to do what he had to do whilst on his own.

So he told her, he told her about Valinor, about Elrond and about Frodo. He told her about the doorframe, the dragons and the dusty landing. He finished and took a breath, realising all of that had taken up several miles of walking.

"How're you going to Kill 4 dragons?" Della asked "I struggled enough with one, and he was only a baby! These are the most powerful dragons ever to exist"

"I'll find a way…" Bilbo smiled but inside he was disappointed at the fact he'd been back in Middle-Earth 24 hours and still had no plan. It could take weeks, months… even years!

"Where are we heading, anyway?" Bilbo asked and Della shrugged

"We're going to the memory wood" she frowned and stumbled slightly, lost in thought

Before she could trip further, Bilbo caught hold of her arm and pulled her back up and she turned to face him.

It could've been hours, it could've been seconds. All Bilbo knew was that he was staring. At Della. For a long time. It was the first time he'd properly looked at her face and he noted her ugliness. Her face would've been pretty once. She had bright eyes and a happy mouth and a set of lovely white teeth. The only problem was the huge scar that ran from the top of her right eyebrow, over her nose and across her right cheek, where it ended at her jawline. The skin around it was dark purple and knotted where the skin had tried to heal itself and the eye that it covered was a slightly darker blue to the other one.

"Thanks" she murmured and pulled her arm away from him.

Bilbo tried to distract himself from the situation ahead and chose to ask Della more "What's the 'Memory Wood'? I've never heard of it before"

Della shook her head "It wasn't called memory wood back then. The forest had a different name. It's where you slayed the spiders, saved your company and pulled on ahead. It's where you met the elf king, stole his bread and, once again, saved your company. It's where no light reached through the leaves and where poisoned water flowed. It's cold and it's worse than ever before…"

"Mirkwood…" Bilbo breathed and let out a puff of air, thinking about the enormity of the situation "It's still around?"

Della nodded "It has grown bigger. But it protects itself; the fog in Mirkwood is dangerous. The very reason it is called the memory wood is because the fog takes on the image of a person's memories and does horrible things. I've seen grown men tumble out of Mirkwood with fear on their faces and tears in their eyes. Most of them are rambling about voices and pictures of the men they've killed. Others say nothing, stuck in a state of shock…."

Bilbo frowned "We have to grow through it…"

Della nodded "Not only will it be safe but… it would be the _perfect_ place for an earth dragon. I bet you any money that's where it's hiding"

Bilbo paused "What? I didn't say you could come with me! It's dangerous!"

"Without me you'd already be dead" Della reminded him "I'm coming too and you can't stop me!"

Bilbo looked her up and down before deciding not to argue with her "I don't actually know your name…" he smiled awkwardly

"Della" said the she-hobbit "Just Della. Not very inspiring, is it?"

Bilbo shook his head "On the contrary, I think it's decent…"

"Decent?!" laughed Della "This is the part where you tell me that it's a lovely name for a lovely face"

"Why would I do that?" Bilbo asked "I don't understand… have I offended you?"

Della narrowed her eyes and shook her head "No…no Bilbo it's…err a joke"

Bilbo nodded and swallowed trying to understand what was happening around him. Women confused him to no end and this journey would be infuriating with Della making difficult jokes every other minute

"It's just what most men say…" Della laughed "To me, I mean… before the incident with the face" she gestured to the scar running from top to bottom of her face

"Why would men say that?" Bilbo asked "If it wasn't for good reason?"

Della laughed "Men around here aren't decent like you Bilbo…they'll say anything to get what they want"

"What do they want?" he asked, innocent of the whole affair

"Never you mind" the she-hobbit smirked "They're men; they all want something from me"

Bilbo didn't answer and continued to walk until the sun faded from the sky again and it quickly turned dark. Della set up camp with the fabrics in her bag and soon a tent was set up with s tiny fire outside it. The she-hobbit crawled into the tent and Bilbo followed her

"What are you doing?" Della asked him "Get out! This is my tent!"

Bilbo blinked at her on his hands and knees and stopped crawling into the low tent "Where am I supposed to go?"

"I don't know…!" Della stammered, clearly outraged "Just get out!"

Bilbo frowned but held his hand up in defeat and shuffled outside to huddle by the fire. The desert was bitterly cold at night, with icy wind biting at him from all directions. The fire soon went out but the dark seemed to smoother him, making sweat drip down the back of his neck

It must've been hour before Della finally softened up and let Bilbo into the tent

"Your shivering was keeping me up" she stated and as Bilbo lay out on the floor amongst thick furs he noted the way she shuffled into the corner

"What's wrong?" he asked, concerned as to why she seemed so afraid

"The way you came into the tent…" Della mumbled "It reminded me of my brother and my dad…"

Bilbo smiled "What about them? What did I remind you of?"

"The bad things" Della sniffled and her eyes closed as she thought back to troubling times. Her eyes squinted as she frowned "The times when I was too young to understand why they were in my tent and what they were doing to me…"

Bilbo sat bolt upright and looked at her with wide eyes "What did they do to you?" he asked, already knowing the answer. There was a gut wrenching tug at his gut as it all settled in. He felt a strange feeling flow through his mind and it was like anger but at the same time, different to anger because this time he wanted to hurt something. He reached his arm out for her

"Della, please I…" Della shook her head at him as he spoke

"Please don't come near me, Bilbo" she smiled sadly but the male hobbit took no notice and reached for her shoulder

"Della, I…" he was cut short as the she-hobbit jumped away from him

"Get away from me!" she screamed and buried her head in her hands, sobbing loudly

Bilbo frowned and took his hands away to let her cry herself to sleep as there was little he could do…


	9. No Smoke Without Fire

_**I am so sorry this is late. I've been in New York for a while and otherwise pre-occupied with my other story: 'Circle Of Life: Re-imagining'**_

_**But on with the tale… x**_

When they woke in the morning nothing was said about the night before. Nothing needed to be said and so the event was quickly forgotten

The sun had already begun to set as they approached the memory wood. Bilbo stared at it. It remained almost exactly the same and the entrance even had the same trees, bending into an archway.

Bilbo stopped dead, as monochrome images of a prince and his nephews flew to him. Then there was a toy-maker, a scribe and many miners. There were tinkers and warriors too, people whom Bilbo had loved once upon a time and then blissfully forgotten. These memories were painful.

Suddenly there was a tugging sensation in his head as the characters seemed to leave his brain and spill onto the ground below.

"No!" Della's voice flitted to him as he felt her hand connect with his face. The pulling feeling stopped

"What was that for?" he asked, waving mist away from his head

"The fog…" Della motioned around them "I could see it leaking into your eyes. What were you thinking of?"

"I…" But it felt stupid "Thorin…" he mumbled "…and Fili, Kili…"

He couldn't finish before Boyish laughter had trickled into his ears, coming from the archway into the memory wood

"They're…in there…" he tried to clear his head but he wanted to run to them

Della held his hand gently "No Bilbo. They're not really…"

"I can…" Bilbo winced "I can hear them…I can…"

"They were gone a _long_ time ago. They're gone"

Bilbo's heart felt numb. But at the same time, he could feel everything. The only people who'd ever mattered to him were dead and gone and buried. Hell, even their skeletons would have disintegrated by now…

"They're gone…" Della said again, almost seeming to remind herself of that fact, not just Bilbo.

The laughter sounded again, from closer this time. They seemed to be right near the start of the trailer

"Della" Bilbo began "I'm sorry"

Della frowned. "What fo-"

Before she could finish, Bilbo shoved her backwards and ran head-long into the woods, trailing dust and sand as Della tried to pick herself off the floor

Bilbo could never remember running so fast in his life. He had to see them. He had to tell Kili to never grow up. He had to tell Fili to enjoy life more, and stop worrying about his brother. And he needed to tell Thorin…God, the things he needed to tell Thorin.

That when he was it; the clearing where they had slept on that first night. Exactly the same as he had left it. The pile of logs was in exactly the same place where they had set a fire. And it was still smoking…


End file.
